March 5, 2014

Described by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as "physical, sexual, or psychological harm by a current or former partner or spouse," intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious public health issue affecting millions of people in the United States. New research from sociologists at Bowling Green State University (BGSU) shows that adolescents and young adults who perpetrate or fall victim to IPV are more likely to experience an increase in symptoms of depression.

Titled, "Intimate Partner Violence and Depressive Symptoms During Adolescence and Young Adulthood," the study appears in the March issue of the Journal of Health and Social Behavior (JHSB). The study is the work of post-doctoral fellow Wendi Johnson and Drs. Peggy Giordano, Monica Longmore, and Wendy Manning.

The researchers used data from the Toledo Adolescent Relationships Study to examine how relationship violence might affect depressive symptoms during adolescence and young adulthood. The first of four interviews were conducted in 2001, when respondents were 12 to 19. Subsequent interviews occurred approximately one year later, with follow ups occurring in two year intervals. Respondents' ages at the time of the last interview ranged from 17 to 24.

In the JHSB study, the researchers examined self-reports of IPV victimization and perpetration and considered the individual's role in the violence (whether violence was mutual or experienced as only a victim or as the perpetrator) as well as earlier victimization by family or peers. They found that few respondents reported continual involvement in IPV across relationships. A more common pattern was for violence to be present in one or two relationships.

The researchers also found that IPV victimization, perpetration, and mutual violence all correspond with increases in symptoms of depression. Furthermore, these results were present for young men as well as women, documenting that young men are not immune to negative psychological outcomes associated with IPV victimization or perpetration.

"In general, young women experience more symptoms of depression than their male counterparts," Giordano said. "However, in terms of IPV, our study indicates that high levels of discord within an intimate relationship have a similar negative effect on the emotional well-being of young men and women."

Johnson notes that while "victimization has a more intuitive, straightforward relationship with declines in mental health," perpetration also corresponds with an increase in symptoms of depression.

The researchers argue that perpetration may be significantly related to depressive symptoms because it is a marker of involvement in an intimate relationship characterized by extensive conflict and other negative dynamics.

"Prevention efforts focusing on IPV appear to have changed public attitudes about the general acceptability of these behaviors—in turn, perpetrators are not immune to negative societal views about those who have resorted to violence within their intimate relationships," Johnson said.

The study goes on to say that psychological distress, including depressive symptoms, may undermine self-confidence and self-worth, thus compromising young people's ability to comfortably transition into adulthood. "Consequently, the costs of IPV may be long term and have additional implications for individuals' choices associated with family formation and stability as well as economic and educational attainment," according to the study.

Interestingly, however, the accumulation of IPV exposure does not appear to offer additional negative contributions to the relationship between IPV and depressive symptoms beyond those stemming from the current or most recent relationship. Similarly, prior IPV exposure does not amplify the relationship between IPV exposure on depressive symptoms.

Related Stories

Intimate partner violence (IPV) among men who have sex with men (MSM) is linked to greater risk of mental and physical health symptoms, substance misuse, and sexually transmitted infections, according to a research article ...

Men who report having bullied peers in childhood appear to have an increased risk of perpetrating violence against an intimate partner in adulthood, according to a report posted online today by the Archives of Pediatrics ...

Over 15 million children are exposed to intimate partner violence (IPV) each year, and the health consequences of this exposure are well-documented. The Institute of Medicine and the United States Preventive Services Task ...

(Boston) —Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious public health concern for all, however women who experience IPV are more likely to sustain injury and report adverse health consequences. An expanding body of research ...

Most parents who experienced intimate partner violence had children that grew to face violence in their own adult relationships, according to a study published by the Crime Victims' Institute at Sam Houston State University.

(HealthDay)—Children of parents reporting intimate partner violence (IPV) and depressive symptoms within the first three years of a child's life are significantly more likely to have a diagnosis of attention-deficit/hyperactivity ...

Recommended for you

A diet rich in magnesium may reduce the risk of diseases including coronary heart disease, stroke and type-2 diabetes according to a new meta-analysis published in the open access journal BMC Medicine. This analysis of the ...

A new study led by environmental health scientist Richard Pilsner at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, one of the first to investigate whether preconception exposures to phthalates in fathers has an effect on reproductive ...

New research from the Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study (MSLS) confirms that persons who eat chocolate at least once a week have a lower prevalence of diabetes and are at lower risk for a diagnosis of diabetes four to five ...

Greater weight increases the likelihood of night sweats and hot flashes during early stages of the menopause transition but reduces those symptoms throughout menopause and beyond, new UC Davis research published in the journal ...

Bisphenol-A (BPA), parabens and antimicrobials are widely used in personal care products and plastics. The U.S. and other governments have banned or restricted some of these compounds' use in certain products for babies and ...